Ino's Place

My first hostel experience. It was really nice, a wooden ambiance and fragrant sheets really heals your soul after a long day of hiking. The other customers were really quiet. When I come back to Sapporo I’ll come back here !

I am disappointed with this hostel. The owner is nice and speaks good English. Also the communal room down stairs is nice. However, this hostel is dated. Beds are old and space feels small and awkward. There are no charging ports where you sleep. When I came in I felt confused. The lights in the hostel room are weak so it’s hard to navigate. Overall, I would not recommend this hostel and I would not come back to it. Unfortunately I booked here for 4 nights!

Positive: -Nice staff -Easy check-in / check out Negatives: -Price and service do not go hand in hand. This place is extremely expensive for what you get. The rolm was 24.000 yen for 2 nights (3 people), we got bunk beds in our own room. We had to pay extra for a bad aircondition that barely worked. We have to pay extra to rent towels. Bed sheets were do-it-yourself and did not fit the blankets (not that they were used due to the lack of cooling). The aircondition was very loud. Fans were installed. They were either very lound or minimally cooling. I would not recommend this place. I did not enjoy the stay.

Stayed here for one night during the snow festival as every other hostel seemed to be booked out several months in advance. The place is clean, with a well equipped kitchen and plenty of toilets and showers. There is ample common room and the free internet was fast and worked well. It did get a little chilly at night though and the heater seemed to just be circulating air (wasn't actually warming up the room). Staff seemed hospitable but not friendly though I didn't have too much opportunity to deal with them as I was out most of the time. While a nice place, I would recommend staying closer to the city if you don't have a car, as it took me about an hour to walk into town when I tried it. The subway is of course available though staying in town doesn't cost any more and saves you time.

Ino's place is a welcoming place and was pretty quiet while we were there. It was pretty chilly in Sapporo in early May though and the heat was off and the owner wouldn't turn it on. Would have been nice to be able to turn it on for a little bit as I used 3 blankets to keep warm! We had a private room that locked which was nice for leaving our backpacks behind while we went out. The shower temp was all over the map as well. They have laundry available, a small vending machine for drinks and coffee/tea available by donation. It's a decent backpackers hostel for those trying to keep it cheaper! If the heat had been on I'd give it 4!

Spent 5 days at this lovely accommodation. Had a very homely feel to it and place is well maintained. Staff are very friendly and able to speak good english. Transport is also reasonably good (5-10 minutes walk from the station) and 20-30 minutes away from JR Sapporo.||||The beds are comfy and the place is well insulated from the cold in winter. Toilets, basin and shower facilities are clean and they provide soap and shampoo free of charge. Common area is nicely kept.||||Price is very reasonable if you stay for the 3 nights special at 7900. ||Most other hostels would charge 3 nights for 9000 at 3000/night.||If you are planning to stay here long term, there is a special monthly rate.||||Will return to stay in this accommodation the next time I visit Sapporo.

I began the first step of my semi-world journey in Hokkaido, Japan, and Ino`s Place has truly spoiled me.||||After flying from SF to LA, to Tokyo Narita, to New Chitose, then hopping on the JR to Shin-Sapporo, then on the subway, then walking four blocks to Ino`s Place, I couldn`t have picked a better place to land after such a long trip. ||||The place is welcomingly laid out, cozily decorated, and the owners are beyond sweet. Eiji-san was patiently waiting for me, since I`d be getting in past closing time. Beds are comfortable, showers nice and hot (especially after having been in three planes and two trains). Free hot tea/coffee/Internet are abound.||||Miwa-san is sweet and incredibly helpful, full of great conversation. The owners really make you feel at home. They were fine with me bringing in a surfboard and I was able to keep it in my room without worry.||||The hostel itself is in a great location, just a short walk from the subway, only four stops from the city center, and a great place to set up base for seeing Sapporo. There are restaurants along the main strip that the hostel is just off of, including a local ramen house which is run by a friendly family that Miwa-san highly recommended. There`s a food center down the street and a 100-yen store close by. ||||I`m bound to stay an extra night (maybe two).I wanted to check out the Otarunai Backpacker`s Hostel while debating on going up to Otaru, and Miwa-san even offered to call them for me, as she knew the owner personally. ||||Do not hesitate. Book your reservation. You won`t regret it, and you won`t want to leave!

This was my first time staying in a hostel and I was a bit anxious as one of the reasons I have always stayed away from them was my reluctance to share a room with strangers.||||I went during peak season which was the snow festival (yuki matsuri) time. The room I stayed in was an all-female one and it housed 7 beds which were all filled during that time. The room was very warm even though it was around -7 degrees celsius or less outside and I never woke up cold, it was great! I think only Hokkaido has insulated buildings and central heating, the rest of Japan is not like that unfortunately. The bed I slept on was really comfortable, I had no issues with it. Unfortunately sharing a room with strangers is a bit of a nightmare so I didn't really get any sleep during my time there. Definitely ear plugs and an eye mask are essential if you want to be able to fall asleep and stay asleep.||||There are 3 shower rooms, and 4 toilets, and they were all pretty clean for so many people being there during that time. They usually got busier in the evening, but I never had to wait too long to grab one for myself. Good water pressure and it was great being able to have a nice hot shower after walking around in the cold all day. There is body soap and shampoo provided in all the showers, and a little stool and two hooks on the walls where you can hang your things.||||Near the hostel are many different types of restaurants, from izakayas to family restaurants, fast food, and around 4 conbinis (conveninece stores). I would recommend the 7/11 in terms of conbinis, it had the best variety of salads and other food (if you got in when they were still all in stock). There was a delicious smelling Indian restaurant up the road which I unfortunately didn't get the chance to try out, but I think somebody should give it a go! Across the road from the hostel there's also a karaoke which is really cheap and would be great fun to go with a group of people. Unfortunately people can smoke in the rooms so expect to leave smelling of it.||||The downstairs floor is where the common area/kitchen is, and it's really cozy and lovely. There is a computer with free internet, there's free wifi for everyone, free coffee and tea and a fridge where you can store your food. There's also a bookshelf with a decent selection of both Japanese and English books. Also a TV and various DVDs if you want to watch something.||There's a 1,000 yen deposit for the key, and you can come back in to the hostel whenever, the doors lock automatically after 10pm and don't unlock again until 7.30am.||||To get to Sapporo station you had to take the Tozai line to Odori station where you would have to transfer to either the Namboku or Toho line, either or which would get you to Sapporo station. A one way trip cost around 240 yen or so, I believe. Definitely worth investing in a Kitaca IC card for passage through the ticket gate without the hassle of buying a ticket.||||My interactions with the people who run the place were lovely and I would highly recommend this hostel!